I got my first sinus infection last year, and it was quite an experience. I usually kind of tough it out when I get a cold or feel sick; it doesn't really matter if I'm sitting around with a runny nose at home or at my desk at work. I don't interact with a lot of people at my job, so I can usually maintain my regular levels of activity when I'm sick. I even try to go to the gym to sweat it out of me. I'm sure there's science that contradicts that idea; I don't care. It's at least partially a mental game: Pretend to feel better, proceed to feel better.

But a sinus infection was a whole other ballgame. I had a meeting scheduled for that day, and I went to bed the night before feeling kind of crappy, but oh well. So I toughed it out and went to work and proceeded to lead my meeting successfully. But after an hour, I was really hurting, so I told my coworkers I was leaving. My commute home takes me over some decent-sized hills, and the blinding pain I felt in my face and skull was something memorable. I purchased some pseudoephedrine, which thankfully didn't cause me any negative side effects. For the next few days, I was nonfunctional. And we happened to get a pretty big snow storm the following day, so I was outside with the snowblower, trudging along blindly, trying not to make any sudden movements that would disrupt my relative statis. It was brutal.

Since that experience, whenever I feel even a hint of sinus pressure, I fear for my general wellbeing. It was such a unique type of pain, it's something I'd rather avoid in the future. Thank science for drugs! #health